Up and Down, Up and down

Sometimes it goes up, sometimes it goes down.

Sometimes one is up when the other is down. 

When one is down, it takes the other to help them back up. 

And when another is too high up, it takes the other to bring them down. 

Its helps much when it comes back down, the other holds ;

just enough so that it don't go crashing to the ground. 

Sometimes, or mostly, both are at a balance. 

And balance takes two to maintain it just like that. 

When one stops trying, the other either falls;

or struggles just to maintain that balance.

And sometimes, when it just gets too tiring, too difficult;

it comes crashing down again. 

So relationship is like a see-saw.

It takes 2 to play, 1 will be no fun at all. 

So if you decide to jump onto a see-saw, 

be ready, be prepared, take courage. 

Bride & Day (mare)

I woke up today with a heavy head and pounding heart.  I had a dream... I'm in church and it's my wedding day. I'm all dressed up in some big massive cap gown but without make-up and my hair was a mess. My make-up artist did not turned up. And my photographer bailed out last minute stating that I did not pay him a deposit. And then Rockstar forgotten to give the bridal walk in music to the sound people. And then there was only a hand full of people sitting in the pews. And the pastor walked in with a long black cloak *like in some epic Cowboy Indian funeral show* with black top hat. I quickly got my twin to do my make-up, handed my camera to a friend to take pictures and as I wanted to walk down the aisle, I realized my eyebrows are horrendous. 

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Like some big furry black worm stuck onto my forehead. And as I got closer to the aisle, it grew and grew *like some freak sci-fi show* and became even more lopsided...if I remembered my dream correctly, I think I tried shaving my own eyebrows because I did not get it done earlier and i accidentaly shaved it wrongly. So its bend like a hockey stick with the longer end hanging vertically beside my eye. How horrid to walk down the aisle on the most important day of your life looking like a monster? 

That nightmare... or bride-mare should have given me a warning sign that it's gonna be a bad day... but since I don't believe such crap, I pushed it aside.. 

But later as I drove to church, in my mother-in-law (to-be)'s car... the temperature needle went all the way to the warning red line *really scary* and with my heart pounding again, I turned in to the petrol station and got a nice petrol attendant to assist me.. Radiator almost dried, and after pouring water in, it started to leak. Our conclusion : radiator leaking. But after a while, the dripping stopped. So I managed to drive back to Rockstar's house and will have 1 day to ponder the complexity of cars before sending it to the workshop on Monday. 

Didn't I say I am jinx already? CAR, Y U NO LIKE ME?

Saw this on proudduck.com and decided to post it up because it made me laugh.. 





Bridezilla or not... Bride-mare or not, thank God I do not have a beard and mustache..

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I think I'll take a long shower, slather on some lavender lotion, put on a mask and prop my feet up in front of the TV...

........and do what I always do when I am feeling down and horrible... EAT CHOCOLATES!!!

Twinnie is engaged too!!

I can't remember if I mentioned it on this blog but my twin sister is engaged!!! *its long overdue* I'm so happy for her. She actually got engaged earlier then me and then I got engaged too, then she had her engagement party and then I sorta had my engagement dinner and even though I am getting married first - 6 months earlier then her.... 2 bridezillas under 1 roof is not a good thing.... muaahahaha *evil laugh*

Anyway, I have not posted up her engagement party photos yet... So here it is.. 

It was a big group of about 50 people with mostly E's relative and some of ours held at our house. There was lots of good food, fun and of cos the proposal video :)

And it was totally decorated by Lydia and my second sister. They are all super creative... I'm the ugly duckling :) Its kinda blurry. I'm not good at night/ dark places pictures.

Bunch of 'crappers'

Eldest sister, BIL, youngest sister, only brother and cousin 

And guess where these bunch went after dinner?

Cramped up inside the tiny laundry room for some childhood board games 

The VIPs of the night.. 

Thank You gifts for everyone.. 

And since the floral arrangements were still alive the next day, I took some more pictures of it under sunlight.. 

White roses, white carnations, blue hydrangeas and some green leaves

Tags with tiny roses crafted from clay - also made by my second sister

My 2nd sister does floral arrangements and wedding decors and just about anything art related. If you want some of her creative ideas, get in touch with her. Contact details below :

Bello Events

Grace 012-3135206

or for art classes :

in2art by Grace Tang

012-3135206

grace.in2art@gmail.com

win-win strategy

OK, I'm going to let you in on a tip...

For the past years, Rockstar have been shopping much more then me.. Seriously..and lately... he started going into expensive watches. In just the last couple of months, he have gotten 7 watches.. and each of them more expensive then the one before...

Do I mind?

Not really... I was at first but then not anymore. You know why?

'Cause I made a deal with him... I told him, "Anytime you want to buy something for yourself, you must first get something for me. If you can't afford to get something for me, then the item you want is most probably not worth buying. 

*ding*ding* 1 score for the girls in 'Guy vs Girl'

Well, truthfully, is a win-win situation. The guy wants something, he gets something for the girl, the girl is happy, the guy gets to buy what he wants, he is happy too. Conclusion : both happy :) 

Other benefits :

1. It also helps him to think twice about getting something.

2. It makes him a smarter buyer. 

3. It helps control the addictive shopaholic syndrome.

4. It gives him the freedom to shop. 

5. Its helps him prioritize his life. 

And it's been working... so far :)

Try it and let me know how it works out.. 

Disclaimer : This only applies to guys who shops a lot. Guys, if your girl shops more then you, please try the above at your own risk. 

wedding package & pink tent

Rockstar and I are quite against the idea of pre-wedding photo shoots. The thought of posing and standing and smiling and sweating while trying to look like you are in love for an entire day just doesn't sound very fun..  

We went to the recent KL Wedding Expo @ MidValley to check out the offers and to confirm our hotel booking. And let me warn all the brides-to-be, DO NOT ever go to a bridal fair on the 1st day right when it open doors.. You'll spend 90% of your time maneuvering your way through the wall maze of sales-personnel. Truthfully, the fair is disappointing. Most of the booths offered pre-wedding shoots to Taiwan or just pre-wedding shoots in general with just a smattering of booths offering bridal cakes, hotel receptions and honeymoon packages. Oh, and 99.9% of the sales people there spoke in mandarin.. 

As we were leaving, I spotted a bridal shop that my sister used when she got married... and when I mentioned it to Rockstar, the sales personnel overheard and talked to us in English *thank goodness*, then the manager came and offered us a really good deal, and the rest is history.. 

I was actually interested in rental of bridal gowns which they offered for RM2,500. Yep, that's right. RM2,500 to rent 2 freaking dresses!!!! I get 1 designer wedding gown and 1 designer evening gown for that price. 

Anyway, to cut the long story short, we finally signed up for a package with a pre-wedding shoot. Why? Here's what we paid for : 

- 1 designer wedding gown (wedding day)

- 1 designer evening gown  (wedding day)

                         +

- 2 designer bridegroom coat  (wedding day)

- Outdoor Wedding Shoot ( 2 locations in Klang Valley) with 120 poses

- 4 designer gowns for photo shoot

- studio make-up

- studio hair

- Acrylic album 12*36 (20 poses/ 10 pages)

- Acrylic album 12*16 (20 pages/ full page)

- Photo frame 20* 40 - 1 piece

- Photo frame 20 * 40 5-in-1 (white frame) - 1 piece

- Photo frame 10*15 - 2 pieces

- Glass frame 10*4 - 2 pieces

- S Glass frame - 1 piece

- DVD - 30 photos + 1 song

- MTV or CRD - 120 poses (original file)

- Wedding Hand Bouquet (roses)

- Car Decoration (netting)

or

Photo frame 10*15 - 1 piece

And guess how much that cost? .....RM3,988. Just a difference of RM1,500. 

So that's how we felll into the trap of pre-wedding photo shoot * darn it *


And since we are on the topic of wedding and I have saved thousands of wedding ideas, here's one that's just so super gorgeous and perfect ... a PINK COLOUR TENT!!!

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OK, I admit... its not really a tent but I'm sure that camp outs will be more fun and glam if we can have pink tents like this... Maybe I could start with pink tents for 10th KL Boys' Brigade? *Haha.. Sir William will most probably roll over in his grave*

Can someone just get me a pink tent already? 

Tea Party

I can so totally imagine me and my sisters or close friends doing something like this in the future... dressing our daughters (and sons) up and having a tea party.. How cute is that?

*pictures taken from Kara's Party Ideas

Doesn't it make you just wanna go out and organize a party just like this? Any sponsor for cute kids?

___________________________

Anyway, it's Chinese New Year! So while you are busy collecting ang pows and eating all those chinese new year cookies.. just wanna drop in and wish 'Gong Xi Fai Cai' to all my chinese friends. :)

An adventure : Taipa & Cotai, Macau

Macau is separated into 4 parts which are known as Macau Peninsular, Taipa, Cotai & Colone. After spending 2 days in Macau Peninsular, it was time to cross the bridge over to Taipa. Taipa house the Macau International Airport and Cotai is home to many up-coming casions, one of which is The Venetian, the largest casino in the world (source : Wikitravel).

Upon arrival, we realize that it a residential area with nothing much to see or do. However, the casinos there were amazing.. Much nicer then the ones located in Macau Peninsular. It's a indeed a bonus for us to be able to experience both.. 

Fave memory : My favourite memory there is, without question, when Rockstar proposed to me. It was unexpected and funny and romantic. Hot, balmy air, romantic lighted walkways, gorgeous architecture... feels like I was in Venice :)

Must eat : Before leaving for Macau, I was instructed to visit the 'Goon Ya Kai " which is a street  filled with food and pastries, located in Taipa. We wanted to try Macanses food but it was hard to find so we decided to go for the next best, Portugese food. We went to Galo, an establisment serving Portugese food and had Beef Steak Coffee Shop Style (MOP85) & Pork Shop with Tomato Rice (MOP70). Another must try is the Mok Hong aka Serradura. It comes in pudding, cake or ice-cream. Ice-cream is absolutely addictive taken cold and dry. 

The well-known corner Pork Burger stall serves pork burger which are hard and dry. A better choice would be another shop located in the middle lot along the main street which specialize in bird nest tart. Their pork burger is freshly made with softer and tastier meat. We tried their bird nest tart and let me say this... delicious! It must be taken when its hot, just let it slide into your mouth and taste the warm soupy fluid slide down your throat and follow it with the crunchy pastry. 

Must See : Macau is famous for their casionos. And some of the must visit casionos are located in Cotai. The Venetian - Its huge, its big, its gorgeous, its beautiful. Take time to walk through the whole place. The Galaxy - Elegant and classy. Its gold outside, gold inside, gold everywhere. City of Dreams - Modern & futuristic. 

Don't Miss : Lord Stow's Bakery, famed for its Macanese Egg Tart. The story behind it is that Lord Stow & Margaret were once husband and wife. Lord Stow bakes, Margaret manages the bakery. Then they divorce and now Margeret has a cafe in Macau Peninsular called 'Margaret's Cafe e Nata' and Lord Stow has 3 bakeries in Cotai & Taipa island. I've tried both and must say that Lord Stow's tart wins hands down, no competition at all. It was so good that I had to go back the second time just to taste the soft and crunchy egg tart, within 1 day. The easiest branch to go is located in The Venetian itself. Look for Franck Muller (the swiss watch shop) and its located a short walk behind it. Just sit a a couch and watch the gondola goes by. When the gondolier starts singing, the whole area vibrates with his/her voice and that is enough to give you goosebumps. 

Where to sleep : We stayed at the GrandView Hotel,  about 10mins walk away from Goon Ya Kai. Its nice and cheaper compared to other hotels. If you are there to gamble, stay in one of the casiono hotels. However, expect the price to be much higher. 

Traveler Tip! : Make use of free buses provided which goes practically everywhere. Bus stations are found in most major casino and its free. Just make sure you queue-up in the right line. You don't want to end up in another casino when your actual destination is the airport.  

Day 2 : Macau Island - Lady of Guia, Dr. Sun & Pork Burger

Warning : Reading session requires a cup of coffee and some jazz music...

Enough of wedding stuff already!!! Need to catch up on my travel post. Its long way overdue, as usual :)

Here is the map I used on my trip to Macau. *sorry its a little crumply*

On the far left, our hotel, Best Western Sun Sun is circled in red. Just horizontally on the right is Senado Square, which became our starting point for each walk. On Day 1, we took a long walk up north from Senado Square to the end of the green line. *open in a new tab and zoom in for a clearer view*

On Day 2, we headed south from Senado Square and ended up at New Yoahan (circled in green, below Senado Square) for lunch. 

Picture taken from hotel room.

Red circle from left to right : Ruins of St Paul's, Monte Fort, Guia Lighthouse & Chapel of Our Lady Guia

After a satisfying lunch @ New Yoahan, we decided to go north east to the Guia Lighthouse, recommended with a fantastic view of the whole Macau Island. It was a long, longggg, longggggg, tiring walk. I only took pictures the first quarter of the journey. After that I needed all my energy to walk.. and the higher we climb, the hotter it became and the slower we walked. The final stretch was the worst, almost 45% slope. Regretted not taking a cab.. 

Went we arrived, it was worth the journey. And we found out there is an easier way to reach the lighthouse, via cable car *pfftttt*. That's what happens when you don't do research before travelling :( 

*wind gauges to check the speed of wind during typhoons..

*huge ass anchor

As we headed downhill, we chance upon this Guia Hill Air Raid Shelter and went it for a peek. 

Decided to take the cable car down the hill. *no way I'm walking down hill* and it only cost MOP2 (single ticket)  which is about RM0.70 per person.. Return ticket MOP3. *smack head*

We reach the Flora Garden and started our walk back south west and passed by Dr. Sun Yat Sen Memorial House. We were quite tired already but decided to take a quick look. Its such a beautiful place, tucked away among other residential place that you might just missed it...  As we walk around, there were only a handful of people and I could feel the hollow-ness of this place. Neglected, forlorn. Its those kind of houses that when you shout a "harlooooo" out, the echo will come right back at you amplifying its emptiness... Kinda creepy. I decided to snapped photos in black & white to pay a respect to this old beautiful place. 

Except for this because it has such a pretty turquoise coloured wall and the dresser.... beautiful, old, antique. I want a dresser like this in my new house :)

We then caught a cab back to the hotel for a quick shower before heading out for dinner @ Senado Square, yet again.  

Sweet & Sour Pork Rice Set. MOP48 = RM19

Stewed Beef Noodle with milk tea. MOP35 = RM13.70. 

Verdict : Lousy and pricey. 

Decided to go for Pork Burger and bubble tea to wash the meal down :)

Bubble Tea = MOP14 = RM5.50. Pork Burger MOP10 = RM3.90. 

Verdict : Hard bread, slightly layered with butter and a slab of meat. Plain. 

We tasted way better Pork Burger the next day. More on that later... 

So that was the end of Day 2 in Macau.. Many more to come :)